The Ultimate Sacrifice
by Joanna May
Summary: The battle is over, and Harry meets a face from the past who teaches him some lessons. made AU by DH, I suppose


The silence was eerie as the sun set over the battlefield. The wind blew gently through the trees, the soft rustling of leaves the only sound. It was as though Mother Nature herself wished to pay a tribute to the fallen. The sunset flooded the horizon, swirling red and yellow and casting menacing shadows across the ground.

A young man stood alone, staring straight ahead. He could not bring himself to break this perfect silence. It felt disrespectful somehow, as though his standing there and breathing was a betrayal to those who no longer could. His friends and teachers lay slain on the battlefield, how could he even think about disturbing them now?

The ultimate sacrifice. That's what people called it, when one died for a cause, wasn't it? After all, there was no greater one that could be made. To lose your life for something you believed in was the biggest display of commitment possible. Or was it? To lay down one's life in the heat of the battle was simple. An instinctive decision. No time to think, or to be afraid. Two seconds and it was over.

Running a shaking hand through the already messy dark hair, Harry Potter sighed deeply. This was what they had been fighting for. Voldemort was gone forever. The wizarding society would rejoice, and proclaim him a saint, for what they perceived as his victory. Never mind the losses, he had saved them again!

"The famous Harry Potter" A voice pierced the silence, taunting and vicious. "I expect they'll be announcing your canonisation any day."

Fingers reaching instinctively for the wand at the sound of that familiar voice, Harry felt his blood boil. He knew that voice. How dare that man turn up to taunt him now? When he had lost everything he had ever known and loved. When Hogwarts lay in ruins at his feet, his friends' blood staining the ground.

"Saint Potter," The voice continued, "It has a certain ring to it, doesn't it?"

"What do you want, Snape?" Harry snarled, refusing to turn and meet the man's eyes. If he so much as looked at him, Harry would sure he would not be able to resist hurting him greatly.

" I want you to realise what you've done, Potter" He felt Snape shrug his shoulders. "It's as simple as that".

"I don't know what you mean" Harry lied, his pulse racing. "I know exactly what I've done. I've saved the wizarding world. I fail to see what I'm missing"

His finger twitched involuntarily and he felt his face flush. How on Earth could Snape- Snape of all people- know what exactly it was he had done? The traitor who had fled so long ago, and dared not show his face. It was just like Snape to come back to needle him now. When Voldemort was gone, and he was now a free agent.

"You never were a good occlumens, Potter." Snape smirked "I can read the minds of fools like you, who wear their hearts on their sleeves with pride, as easily as a book."

"I've told you, I have no idea what you're talking about" Harry growled. "Why don't you just crawl back under the rock you came from, turncoat?"

Snape threw his greasy head back and laughed cruelly. "Turncoat? Is that what you think of me, Potter? That I betrayed your cause, and your friends? To be a traitor, one must be trusted, and I can assure you I never was. Not by you, not by Black or the werewolf, and certainly not by Dumbledore"

"OF COURSE DUMBLEDORE TRUSTED YOU. HE TRUSTED YOU WITH HIS LIFE!" Harry roared, his anger forcing him to turn and face Snape. "He trusted you to uncover Malfoy and you killed him"

"You are like a child" Snape snapped. "Dumbledore trusted me no further than he could throw me, and he made quite sure I was aware of that. Just because he didn't share the innermost workings of that overinflated head of his with you, doesn't mean he was an open book."

"And what if he didn't trust you? He had no reason to, you've proved that!" Harry retorted.

"Exactly. I'll bet he wasn't surprised when I turned against him. I betrayed no trust there. But you, Potter…" Snape hesitated. "It would seem I underestimated you. Hidden depths there, no?"

Snape looked down at his robes, and smoothed them idly. Harry's mouth was dry, and he could not bring himself to speak. He released his grip on his wand, as he felt the wave of guilt that hit him.

"Ah, you remember now, Potter?" Snape smirked. "I speak of course, of the late Miss Granger. Such a bright girl, although of course I never would have told her so. So much potential there. The Dark Lord had great plans for her, oh yes." He pulled a sad face, mocking Harry.

"I told him, again and again how it would be useless to even contemplate her joining us. She was too headstrong and steadfastly good. It was quite tiresome, to be honest. And even if we had managed to track her down, Potter's Army would have protected her too much for us to kidnap her. You see, that was the strength of Potter's Phoenix lot. They had _love _on their side. They cared to see each other safe."

"Shut your mouth" Harry snapped.

"While the Death Eaters would sell their own grandmothers for a bit of power, your group weren't like that. No, your friends weren't bargaining chips. or so we thought."

"I'm warning you."

"And yet, you were quite happy to sacrifice her for your cause, were you not, Potter?" Now the voice was sharper, more menacing and accusing. "When the Dark Lord offered to fight you face to face, in a final showdown, he had only one condition, didn't he Potter? What was it?"

"Shut the Hell up, Snape." Harry shouted, his voice cracking in the middle.

"Don't speak to me like that, Potter. I'm just keen to hear it from your lips." Reaching out, Snape seized Harry by the arm and clenched tightly. "What did Saint Potter do when the Dark Lord came knocking?"

When Harry's lips remained shut, Snape shook him hard, bringing him to his knees. "Saint Potter offered him the Granger girl with no hesitation."

Whether it from the pain of Snape's grip or from the realisation of his crimes, Harry could not tell. And yet tears started to flow down his cheeks.

"Do you know what the Dark Lord did to her, Potter? He tied her down and he crucioed her until she lost her precious mind. And as she writhed and screamed on the floor, do you know what she said?"

Silence from Harry. Snape snarled, spit flying from his lips as he ploughed on mercilessly. "She said that she forgave you. That it was for the cause, and she understood why you had done it. She screamed and she shouted and she cried, and yet she forgave you."

"And what do you have now, Famous Harry Potter?" Snape spat. "You betrayed the best friend you ever had for this moment. Was it worth it?"

"Why are you doing this?" Harry asked, his voice weak yet resentful. "What does it matter to you if she's dead. You despised her, she was a Mudblood to you"

"I care, Potter, because I was right about you. And I want you to realise it. I might not be a saint, but I never sold a friend down the river to benefit myself. I care because the wizarding world sees you as a Saint and a Saviour, when really you're no better than Riddle himself." Pushing Harry away from him violently, he turned on his heels and began to walk away.

"You might have won the battle, Potter, but you've certainly lost the war."


End file.
